Bankruptcy affects people from all walks of life and all income levels. It affects married and single people, and age is no barrier. Seniors, as well as those just starting out in life, file for bankruptcy.
Cases Filed in 2020
Statistics can often give us a picture of averages, but the actual spread is large. Let’s start with some basic figures for the numbers of cases filed, in this case for the year 2020. It is difficult to pinpoint exactly why there is such a wide variation in filing rates across the country. However, it may involve the local legal culture, the presence or absence of effective debt-collection laws, or state poverty rates. You can view more filing statistics at the U.S. Courts website.
What Factors Lead to Personal Bankruptcy Filings?
Because filing a bankruptcy case can be a huge decision with long-lasting consequences—positive and negative—people who are contemplating filing bankruptcy often want to know whether their reasons for filing are typical, reasonable, or sound. A study published in the American Journal of Public Health reported that 66.5% of all bankruptcies were tied to medical issues. This includes medical debt itself in addition to the loss of income/wages from time off work. However, medical debt is far from the only reason people file for bankruptcy. Other leading factors that contribute to bankruptcy filings include unemployment and domestic issues like divorce. Many of these factors involve circumstances the filer could not control.
Bankruptcy Filing Demographic Statistics
Consider the following statistics about filing bankruptcy from Debt.org:
More than 64% of bankruptcy filers are married.Those younger than age 25 made up fewer than 2% of filers. About 20% of filers are 55 years or older. The median age is about 45.People ages 65 and older make up about 8% of filers. Those ages 34 and younger make up about 19% of filers.Women are slightly more likely to file than men: 52% vs. 48%.60% make $30,000 or less annually. Almost 10% of filers made $60,000 or more.20% of bankruptcy filers held a bachelor’s degree or higher.29% had some college education.36% had a high-school education level.16% are repeat bankruptcy filers.
Bankruptcy affects all age groups and all socioeconomic classes. In fact, it’s easy to argue that there is no “average” or typical bankruptcy filer, but if we were to build one, they would likely be a middle-aged married person who graduated from high school and makes less than $30,000 per year. Even so, the statistics bear out that outside circumstances—more so than age, income, or educational level—play huge roles in decisions to file or not file.
